ROWE RACING to take part in premiere: For the first time, two races on the Nordschleife on one weekend
St. Ingbert, July 8, 2020 – After the first NLS race under “Corona conditions” and without spectators, ROWE RACING will once again be involved in a premiere this coming weekend: For the first time ever in the long history of the VLN, the tradition-steeped racing series will be staging two races on one weekend on July 11 and 12 on the Nordschleife. The reason for this is the changed race calendar due to the numerous race cancellations at the beginning of the season caused by the COVID 19 pandemic. Thus, the 60th ADAC Reinoldus Endurance Race will first take place on the usual Saturday, followed on Sunday by the 52nd ADAC Barbarossapreis as the third round of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) season.
Both races will again be held without spectators and under the specifications of an extensive hygiene concept. However, like all the other teams in the top SP9, SPX and SPPRO categories, the team from St. Ingbert will once again be able to swap its place in the outdoor pit lane in the paddock for a familiar pit garage in the regular pit building, which was still closed to the teams at the season opener. The regulations were adapted accordingly within the hygiene concept by the organizers at the beginning of this week. However, the long route during pit stops through the long temporary pit lane in the paddock with the distinctive turning circle will remain.
ROWE RACING will be relying on the proven BMW M6 GT3 with the #98 and three BMW factory drivers for this weekend’s double pack. On Saturday, Briton Alexander Sims celebrates his comeback to the team from St. Ingbert, for whom he last sat in the cockpit in 2018 at the ADAC 24h race at the Nürburgring and second place at the 24 Hours of Spa, among other events. His current main field is the FIA Formula E. Sims shares the #98 BMW M6 GT3 with compatriot Nick Yelloly, who is competing for ROWE RACING at the Nürburgring for the first time after stints in the 2018 Blancpain GT Series. Yelloly will also be in the second race on Sunday, then together with BMW DTM driver Lucas Auer. For the Austrian, it will be his first race outing for ROWE RACING and also his racing debut in a GT3 car in the “Green Hell”, having already gained initial experience with the BMW M6 GT3 on the Nordschleife during the test and set-up session prior to the NLS season opener.
Both races of the weekend will take place at the usual time at 12:00 and traditionally last four hours. On Saturday and Sunday, qualifying will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. to determine the starting grid.
Hans-Peter Naundorf, Team Principal ROWE RACING: “Two races in one weekend on the Nordschleife are a premiere and a big challenge for all of us. As we are not allowed to be on site with our usual team strength due to the Corona conditions, we have few opportunities to make major set-up changes or repairs to our vehicle between the two races. That’s a big difference from normal race weekends. However, unlike the first race of the season, we’re now allowed to work in a regular pit garage again, which makes the team’s work much easier. This does not change anything in terms of safety for all team members, as we voluntarily carry out PCR tests on all persons deployed before the event anyway, and there is still a comprehensive mask requirement. On the part of the organizers, it is a great achievement that they have now been able to adapt the hygiene concept, which was successful at the first race, to such an extent for the teams in the top categories. On the driver side, we’re looking forward to Lucas Auer and Nick Yelloly making their first race appearances for us on the Nordschleife and Alexander Sims rejoining the team after a long break. He’ll certainly need a lap or two to adjust from his Formula E car to the BMW M6 GT3, but will then be delighted to be able to really step on the gas again on the track and not have to concentrate on energy management.”
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